Tag Archives: games room

It seems fitting that you should be able to get your Table Tennis fix when out in the Alps and staying in a chalet. After all, it was invented over at a dinner party and was originally played with a wine cork as the ball. So where can you play this? Well if you are planning a ski holiday to Meribel then you may want to consider the Chalet Serpolet, as not only does it have a sauna and hot tub it also has a games room complete with a Table Tennis table.

The game has seen a major resurgence since its inception in the 1880s, as an after dinner game played with books for nets and rackets. Its recent popularity has come from many sources. Thousands of people took an interest in it when it appeared in the 1994 movie Forest Gump. It was also a ratings winner in the 2012 summer Olympics despite the Chinese dominance of the game. Also as part of the Olympic legacy, 100’s of outdoor tables have been put into our parks and recreation areas. Also, many Table Tennis themed bars such as Ping in Earls Court have popped up, not as part of the Olympic legacy.

So let’s imagine that you have never heard of Table Tennis, Ping Pong or Wiff Waff before and you have booked into stay at the Serpolet. You will probably want to know the basics and the rules.

What you need to know.

Equipment
To play you will need a racket or paddle as it is also known. A ball and a 9 ft long by 5 ft wide table with a 6 inch net to divide the table up. All of these items are available in the games room of our chalet Serpolet.

How to Play

Deciding the serve.

This is done by the toss of a coin.

Serving
To serve you must throw the ball up into the air, which must be at least the height of the net. You must then hit the ball so that it bounces first in the servers court and then in the opponents, without hitting the net.

Returning shot
When returning the serve the receiver must send the ball back before it bounces a second time in their side of the court. The returner must not hit it into their side of the table or the net.

Let
A let is allowed if the ball touches the net in service or when the player receiving the service is not ready to receive the serve.

How to score points
Points get scored when a rally is concluded in one of the following ways: The return of service fails; The ball is hit and does not touch the table on the opponents side; One of the players obstructs the ball; The ball is struck twice by the same player; A point is awarded to you if the competition hits the ball with the wrong side of the bat; If the opposition moves the table or net during play; You opponent is awarded a point if you touch the table with your non-playing hand.

The winner is the person who scores 11 points first. In the event that both players reach 10 points then the game is played until one person has a lead of 2 points. If you are playing a match then you should play to the best of 5 or 7

Who serves and from what end?
At the beginning of each game the players change ends. The services is decided rotated every two serves, this is regardless of who won the last point.

If you should choose you can also play a doubles game. The rules effectively remain the same with some additions

Doubles rules
When serving the play must go diagonally as the table is divided up into 4 quarters, this means the server must serve from the right hand side of the table to the left hand side. During play each team member must hit the ball in an alternating pattern. When the service is changed the receiver becomes the server and the partner of the server becomes the receiver.

Sometimes a match may go on a long time, especially if you are a novice. This could be annoying if you have a deadline, such as Canapés and wine being served at 7.30 or the ski lifts opening and it is a fresh powder day. The good news is that there is speedy version of the game. Sadly this only really benefits those of us that can have a rally of more than 13 returns.

Obviously Ping Pong is no substitute for getting on the mountains and skiing, but it can provide you with a lot of entertainment in the evening. That is once you have finished in the hot tub or jacuzzi.